This invention relates to a device for separating a gas from a particulate matter. More specifically, this invention relates to a device for separating a gas from a liquid or a solid.
The need for a controlled supply of humidified air in medical and other applications is well documented. For example, a controlled supply of humidified air is needed to maintain a clean room in a hospital. Temperature, air pressure, and humidity conditions must be maintained precisely to maintain a pristine clean room. Problems associated with excessively dry air are well documented. The need to provide and maintain clean rooms is well known in the medical profession. Similarly, the importance of clean rooms is known to be critical in semiconductor chip fabrication operations as well as in the manufacture of chemical, pharmaceutical, and other products.
Typically, building humidification systems are centrally located large scale units which generate large quantities of steam to humidify various portions of the building. These large scale units are typically positioned at locations which are remote from the areas of the building to be humidified. Air ducts and other pipes are required to carry the steam or water vapor from the remote locations to the area to be humidified. Typically, steam is introduced into the building air at desired locations by means of steam humidifiers placed in air ducts. Humidity detectors are generally used with humidifiers to modulate the amount of steam being introduced.
The controlled supply of humidified air preferably does not contain excess liquid. Steam cools and condenses into water as it travels to the area to be humidified. Unfortunately, the liquid can then be delivered with the humidified air and can collect in air ducts and dampen sensitive portions of the area to be humidified, and objects located therein. In general, separators are useful to remove excess liquid from gases, and more particularly separators are useful for removing condensed steam, or water, from a flow of steam to produce dry steam. The conventional separators are often designed with high body volume and therefore low speed steam and water flows. Such separators can be bulky, relatively cumbersome to manufacture and use. The separators typically have a large mass and may receive a heat transfer from its surrounding environment. It would thus be desirable to provide a smaller separator.
The above objects as well as other objects not specifically enumerated are achieved by a device for separating a gas from a flow of the gas and particulate matter. The device has a chamber defined by a receiving surface. The device has a gas inlet conduit and a gas outlet conduit. The gas inlet conduit is positioned to deliver the flow of the gas and the particulate matter to the chamber. The gas outlet conduit is positioned to exhaust the flow of the gas from the chamber. The device includes a stationary impeller positioned within the chamber and having an upstream surface and a downstream surface. The impeller is configured to deflect the flow of the particulate matter and the gas to a radially outward flow of the particulate matter and the gas in a direction toward the receiving surface of the chamber. The device includes a gas exhaust port positioned in the gas outlet conduit and downstream of the gas inlet conduit and the impeller.
According to this invention, there is provided a device for separating a gas from a flow of the gas and particulate matter. The device has a chamber defined by a receiving surface. The device has a gas inlet conduit and a gas outlet conduit. The gas inlet conduit is positioned to deliver the flow of the gas and the particulate matter to the chamber. The gas outlet conduit is positioned to exhaust the flow of the gas from the chamber. The device includes an impeller positioned within the chamber and having an upstream surface and a downstream surface. The impeller is configured to deflect the flow of the particulate matter and the gas to a radially outward flow of the particulate matter and the gas in a direction toward the receiving surface of the chamber. The impeller has a central portion positioned generally in the center of the impeller. The device includes a gas exhaust port positioned in the gas outlet conduit and downstream of the gas inlet conduit and the impeller. The gas inlet conduit has a major cross-sectional dimension and the central portion of the impeller has a major cross-sectional dimension at least approximately as large as the major cross-sectional dimension of the gas inlet conduit.
According to this invention, there is also provided a device for separating a gas from a flow of the gas and particulate matter. The device has a chamber defined by a receiving surface. The device has a gas inlet conduit and a gas outlet conduit. The gas inlet conduit is positioned to deliver the flow of the gas and the particulate matter to the chamber. The gas outlet conduit is positioned to exhaust the flow of the gas from the chamber. The device has a means for imparting centrifugal motion to the particulate matter. The device includes an impeller positioned within the chamber and having an upstream surface and a downstream surface. The impeller is configured to deflect the flow of the particulate matter and the gas to a radially outward flow of the particulate matter and the gas in a direction toward the receiving surface of the chamber. The impeller has a central portion. The device includes a gas exhaust port positioned in the gas outlet conduit and downstream of the gas inlet conduit and the impeller.
According to this invention, there is also provided a device for separating a gas from a flow of the gas and particulate matter. The device has a chamber defined by a receiving surface. The device has a gas inlet conduit and a gas outlet conduit. The gas inlet conduit is positioned to deliver the flow of the gas and the particulate matter to the chamber. The gas outlet conduit is positioned to exhaust the flow of the gas from the chamber. The device includes an impeller positioned within the chamber and having an upstream surface and a downstream surface. The impeller is configured to deflect the flow of the particulate matter and the gas to a radially outward flow of the particulate matter and the gas in a direction toward the receiving surface of the chamber. The device includes a gas exhaust port positioned in the gas outlet conduit and downstream of the gas inlet conduit and the impeller. The gas inlet conduit includes a major cross-sectional dimension. The chamber has a volume. The ratio of the major cross-sectional dimension cubed to the volume of the chamber is within the range of from about 1:3 to about 1:14. The gas exhaust port has a major cross-sectional dimension. The gas exhaust port is spaced apart from the downstream surface of the impeller by a distance of less than about one major cross-sectional dimension.
According to this invention, there is also provided a device for separating a gas from a flow of the gas and particulate matter. The device has a chamber defined by a receiving surface. The device includes an impeller positioned within the chamber and having an upstream surface and a downstream surface. The impeller is configured to deflect the flow of the particulate matter and the gas to a radially outward flow of the particulate matter and the gas in a direction toward the receiving surface of the chamber. The device includes a gas exhaust port positioned in the gas outlet conduit and downstream of the gas inlet conduit and the impeller. The gas inlet conduit includes a major cross-sectional dimension and the gas inlet conduit has a longitudinal axis. The chamber has a length in a direction along the longitudinal axis of the gas inlet conduit. The ratio of the major cross-sectional dimension of the gas inlet conduit to the length of the chamber is within the range of from about 2:1 to about 1:3.
According to this invention, there is also provided a device for separating a gas from a flow of the gas and particulate matter. The device has a chamber defined by a receiving surface. The device has a gas inlet conduit and a gas outlet conduit. The gas inlet conduit is positioned to deliver the flow of the gas and the particulate matter to the chamber. The gas outlet conduit is positioned to exhaust the flow of the gas from the chamber. The device includes an impeller positioned within the chamber and having an upstream surface and a downstream surface. The impeller is configured to deflect the flow of the particulate matter and the gas to a radially outward flow of the particulate matter and the gas in a direction toward the receiving surface of the chamber. The device includes a gas exhaust port positioned in the gas outlet conduit and downstream of the gas inlet conduit and the impeller. The gas exhaust port has a major cross-sectional dimension. The gas exhaust port is spaced apart from the downstream surface of the impeller by a distance of less than about one major cross-sectional dimension.
Various objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, when read in light of the accompanying drawings.